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I've got a brooks spanner. Is that monthly social ride still happening? I can bring it to the next one perhaps.

I've retired my brooks pro after deciding that it was not as comfortable as modern saddles: this is after about 3000 miles, keeping it dry and using proofide. It also weighs shitloads. I just don't see why so many people swear by them.

@ Hippy. Are you thinking about buying a folder? If so, I can't help you much because I've never ridden one. However, I remember that Jim Langley thinks highly of the Airnimal Chameleon, he talks about it on his site. It's not going to fold up very small, but it looks pretty fast...

I use these

and these

These gloves are the business, they're pricey though. I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have paid nearly £40 for them - I must have found them cheaper somewhere else.

I now use 49:18 which is fine for me.

I started off with 42:16 though, then went 43:16, then 49:18. If it's your first time fixed then I reckon it's best to err on the low side to start with. Also depends on how flat your regular routes are.

I see SJS do a threadless bottom bracket. Will keep it in mind if the loctite solution fails.

I think I'm starting to lean towards the Ti option. I'm just not sure how I'd feel about locking it up in town. Perhaps I could give it a shit paint job.

Is that your tool wall dogsballs?

After further research my shortlist has grown to this...
[ulist]
[li]Setavento Ti[/li]
[li]Bob Jackson Vigorelli track[/li]
[li]Robin Mather[/li]
[li]Burls[/li]
[li]Dave Yates[/li]
[li]Chas Roberts[/li]
[li]Mercian Vigorelli[/li]
[/ulist]
Help.

Thanks for the tip, but I just spoke to shop and the loctite is already in there so it's past the point of no return. I was looking for an excuse to get a new frame anyway, so it's not all bad. Just a bit sad to see her go. :(

I had some bad news this morning. The threads on by bottom bracket shell are fcked - the bb works it way loose a week or so after tightening. I've asked the mechanic to use loctite or something for now (the BB is new) but it means that my frame is on it's last legs and it's time to look for a new one.

I was thinking about a Mercian Vigorelli, a Roberts, or something similar (new and made to spec, lugged steel). I've even thought about Setavento titanium.

Does anyone have any useful information or experience of production time, value, quality, service etc with any of these guys? I know that someone on here got a Mercian built recently...

dicki love the canals and the south bank

hate the mile end road and oxford street / new oxford street

I'm the other way round. I like the West End (avoiding all the traffic and peds keeps me on my toes) and I I don't like the canal towpath. Agree with those who said anywhere at night.

Jesus. That frame is HUGE.

Aha - I see now. I'd missed that thread, very funny indeed. Cheers velocity boy. The comments on the article are worth reading too, if you want a laugh. My favourite...

"Uncle Bob said...
The "Jamaican Skid"? Isn't that what the West Indian bus-driver does as his red double-decker slides over the top of you at the junction because you couldn't stop on your brakeless, platform-pedalled fashion accessory?
October 16, 2007 7:42 PM"

Bike Snob NYC makes me laugh.

Did anyone read the FGG comment of the pista guy? He sounds like a dick. I'd put a crazy buckle in that guys head if he hauled ass anywhere near me. If I had paypal I'd be sending over the ca$h for him to buy some proper pedals and some English lessons.

IMO all Campy brakes are good, as are all Shimano from 105 up (105, Ultergra and Dura-Ace). Tektro are good. If you're thinking of really splashing out, how about

these

these

or these?

dominiclincoln Have you got one? Does yours work? Has it proven itself?
abus Granit 1000

A friend of mine has one - he finds it a pain in the arse to lock/unlock. You need the key to lock it, unlike other ones which snap shut.

The temperature isn't that low at the moment, but when it gets really cold you're going to want some overshoes or something, otherwise you are entering a world of pain. Having said that, if you are only riding short distances you can get away with it. I use ones that only cover the toes - since that's the bit that suffers the most. Adidas do them, and Assos if you're feeling flush.

7.6 kilos. Not bad for a lugged steel frame.

This month's Cycling Plus has tested a load of track pumps. Can't remember which one they thought was the best. Go into a newsagents and flick through the mag.

Have you tried taking it to a bike shop? They'll have the tools and the know-how. I took mine down Brixton cycles in the end and they got it out for me, up until that point I had tried everything.

I've been looking for one too. There's this one on ebay for about £60 - it's got Titanium rails so it's twice the price of the regular saddle.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/San-Marco-Regal-Racing-Replica-Saddle_W0QQitemZ320150926025QQihZ011QQcategoryZ22693QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

It's not quite white though.

Sheldon Brown has got some interesting things to say about front brakes vs rear brakes for stopping, front it way better. Have a look on his site.

I think this rear brake to stop thing comes from BMX when you were worried about going over the bars. I only ever use my rear brake on my road bike to take some speed off on descents, and to add a bit more stopping power in the wet.

If you're single speed then fit front and rear brakes I reckon, you can take the rear one off if you go fixed. Saw a single speed the other day with only a front brake. I figured that the owner was trying to pretend it was fixed, we wasn't fooling me. I imagine it's fucking dangerous in the wet, going downhill...

Here's one for Rakan. You were looking for a straight blade carbon 1" fork right?

How about this Colnago Star?. You've got 30 minutes to bid.

Perhaps shit is a bit rude, I didn't want to upset anyone. But IMO the quill system is shitter than a-head, yes. Maybe I should have used another word, like inferior.

I had an alu quill stem fitted to a steel fork and steerer. The stem fused into the steerer, because when alu corrodes it expands. It corroded because there wasn't a good enough seal to keep out water. This is a common problem with quill stems, and a problem that is inherent in the design of the system. You could argue that I should regularly take the quill out and clean and grease the interface and then reassemble, but this was a fixed gear commuter bike whose goal in life was to be easy to maintain. If you're interested, the stem had only been in the fork for about 8 months, and yes - it was greased. I had to pay a bike shop to cut the stem off just above the headset, then the remains of the stem and the fork had to be thrown away and replaced.

Couldn't be bothered to read all the comments, but if we're still talking about puncture-proof tyres then I vote for Michelin Krylion Carbons. 55% off at Parkers at the moment too, £15 each.

In the summer I usually just run Michelin Pro 2 Race and make sure I pick the grit and glass out of them every couple of weeks, but this year it's been so wet I've still got my winter tyres on.

1. Vodkahippy
   
2. Fixedwheelnut
   
3. Sam
   
4. Charlotte
   
5. Mikey
   
6. Gus69
   
7. smeear
   
8. Stef
   
9. nv55